What Hiring Managers Actually Want in Your Resume

It’s a common myth that your resume is about you. It's not. In this episode, I discuss: 

• What your resume is really about
• The changes you need to make now to get noticed

Chapters

• 0:00 Setting The Resume Agenda
• 0:37 Resume As Brand And Risk Signal
• 1:31 Contact Details And LinkedIn Basics
• 2:18 Forward-Focused Impact And Themes
• 3:42 Action Verbs And Measurable Results
• 4:35 Build A Networking Resume
• 6:03 Consider A Pro Resume Writer
• 6:23 Align Everything With LinkedIn
• 7:03 Closing Encouragement And Contact

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey everyone, welcome back to the podcast. Okay, this week, episode short and sweet and very direct, which I think I usually am very direct. But this week we're going to talk about your resume. When I worked for a global holding company, I think I probably saw a few hundred resumes a year. And now, as I work as a career strategist, I also see a few hundred resumes every year. And today I want to share eight tips that I feel that you can implement right now to improve your resume, your networking, uh your LinkedIn profile, things that you can do right now. First, your resume is not about you. I know it feels like it's about you, but your resume is really a marketing document for the brand of you. You have seconds to get past the gatekeeper or the screener, the person who is the internal or the external recruiter who is going to quickly look over your resume to make sure that you are a low-risk candidate. Why is that? Because the last thing that that screener needs is for that the hiring manager or the person who's part of the interviewing team to say to this, to say to the screener, why did you send me this person, right? No one wants to be in the hot seat for that. So your job in the resume is to differentiate yourself, to show your brand is really a branding document, and also to show that you are a low-risk candidate who's done pretty amazing things. So a couple of tips here. First, I want you to take your street address off your resume. I still see this and I think it's kind of funny. Take it off. We don't need it. If it's LinkedIn, you can um you can use your city and state, but and if you're in a very small town, but you're close enough to a general, a larger metropolitan area, you may want to put that in there. But your resume should basically have your name, your phone number, your email address, and then include a hyperlink to your LinkedIn profile. That should be in there. Next, your resume is supposed to show the employer or the potential hiring manager, right? That you are ready, that you're already in this challenge, that there's not a stretch. They want to know that, again, you're low risk and that you can kind of hit the ground running. So it's not about looking back, it's about looking forward. Too many resumes are solely a laundry list of all the things that you've done previously. And yeah, those needs need things need to be on your resume, but it is so key to have a few bullet points on your resume that sort of tie up key results, accomplishments. Think of them as like themes. And at the senior level, this is not a credentials game. We know that you've done it. This is about, again, how do you differentiate yourself so that you are remarkable and that you are remembered. Again, it's your branding. You also want to think about the list of key strengths and skills that will be attractive to the person who is screening the resume. And as you know, we read left to right, but we also read 25% slower on screen. So the skimmer is going through this really, really fast. And they're going to make sure they find the bullets that are relevant with their eye. So if you've had a chance to see the job description or a similar job description, make sure you've aligned those bullets around strengths and skills that are attached to the job description. And if you don't know, see what you can pick up from either talking to other confidants, talking to people in the industry, or if there's anything on the website or any collateral on their social media profiles that give you an idea of the types of things they're looking for. A lot of companies print out their values on their website. That might also be another place that you can pull from, assuming you align to those. The next thing I want you to do is you do go into more of a standard resume here and listing out the roles you've had, but I don't want you to list this as just the things that you were doing, right? You know, this idea of like I manage something. Well, that's not really a proactive word. I know it feels like it is, but not in today's marketplace. I want to see words like developed, generated, drove, achieved, secured, led, all action words. And then also you want to think about in this section that you're showing people the challenges you faced, the value that you brought to the role. And here's also a place where I want numbers, I want percentages, I want the impact. If the number is too small, do it as a percentage. And also think about impact like 2x, 10x, those types of things are also acceptable for the section. Okay, next is a networking resume. So many opportunities that are out there are either on the underground job boards, which is like really word of mouth, or they're completely unlisted, especially when these roles are getting into multiple six figures. And the purpose here is that you don't want someone to have to figure out how to market you or how to introduce you or how to connect you with another. Plus, we don't do invisible labor here. And we're certainly not gonna let someone else figure out how to describe our magic. I go into more detail around a networking resume in the article I wrote for Fast Company. And I'm gonna put the link to that in the show notes. But at a very high level, you wanna think about this is not to replace your resume, this is in addition to your resume. You wanna think about what is the desired position? What are the possible positions or titles that you would be great for? A summary of your background, your strengths, your skills, high-level achievements. Also, if there's a target list of companies or if you're open to relocating, all of that would go into your networking resume. And the networking resume is often the thing that you share. When you call someone in your network and say, like, hey, do you know anyone you connect me with anyone? That is what you're sending them. So it makes it really easy for them to flip that forward to somebody else and it tells the story for you. The next thing I'm gonna say is like, seriously, consider hiring a resume writer who focuses on helping you really extract and tell your story. You need someone who can help you fine-tune your elevator pitch and really find the way to convey your point and your point of difference. I've found personally from for you know recommending to clients, I have found that ExecuteNet is one of the best services out there for this. And I'll put a link to them in the show notes, but definitely want to check them out because they really specialize in thinking about your resume in a different way and helping you with storytelling. Okay, and lastly, is once you've done this, is I want to make sure that you have updated everything to correspond with your LinkedIn profile. I'll often see a resume and then go to the person's LinkedIn profile, and it's totally different. 95 job applicants are submitted every minute on LinkedIn. Six people are hired every minute now from LinkedIn. And there's something like uh almost a 90% year-over-year increase in confirmed hires on LinkedIn just in the last quarter. I've also created a top 10 pro tips to help you stand out on LinkedIn. I'm gonna put that in the show notes, okay? Short, sweet, you can implement these steps today, make it happen. All right, my friends, you got this. I really appreciate you being here. Have a great week, and I'll see you next time. I'm Jill Griffin, your host of the Career Refresh Podcast. My mission is to make workplaces more successful for everyone. So if you have ideas for topics or future guests, please email us at hello at Jill Griffin Coaching.com. Until next time, embrace possibility, be generous, intentional, and kind.